In 2023, there are a number of changes occurring in dental services including the start of a new Senate inquiry and new registered nurses in residential aged care. Yet in the meantime there are gaps and delays in dental and oral health interventions for elderly Australians, unless training is more widely deployed.
Dental and oral health are important for the elderly for a number of important reasons:
- Maintaining overall health: Good dental and oral health are important for maintaining overall health in the elderly. Poor oral health can contribute to a range of health issues, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and respiratory problems.
- Nutrition: Maintaining good oral health is essential for proper nutrition, particularly for the elderly who may have difficulty eating due to tooth decay or missing teeth. Poor oral health can lead to malnutrition, which can exacerbate existing health problems.
- Pain management: Dental problems such as cavities, gum disease, and tooth infections can cause pain and discomfort, which can be particularly challenging for the elderly. Treating dental problems promptly can help manage pain and improve quality of life.
- Socialisation: Maintaining good oral health is important for socialisation and maintaining a positive self-image. Missing teeth or other dental problems can cause embarrassment and social isolation, which can negatively impact mental health and well-being.
- Preventing infection: Good oral hygiene is essential for preventing infection, particularly for the elderly who may be more susceptible to infections due to a weakened immune system. Poor oral health can contribute to infections such as pneumonia, which can be particularly dangerous for the elderly.
Overall, maintaining good dental and oral health is important for the elderly to maintain overall health, manage pain, improve nutrition, socialise, and prevent infections. Regular dental check-ups and good oral hygiene practices are essential for achieving and maintaining good oral health.
Australian Health Journal spoke to Leonie Short, a dental therapist working for Seniors Dental Care Australia on what she considers are dental and oral health priorities for the elderly, based on her work in the aged, home and disability sectors.
She passes her thoughts on the repetitive findings likely identified by the new Senate Select Committee into the Provision of and Access to Dental Services in Australia. She sees the need for funding a Seniors dental benefit scheme as the higher priority instead.
Leonie also speaks to the upcoming requirement for residential aged care having a registered nurse on site. There is a gap in the knowledge and evidenced based oral health care in residential aged care, for even cleaning of teeth or dentures. This training is provided by her organisation to nurses, support workers and carers.
Leonie recognises in Australian society, more elderly people are retaining their natural teeth, with crowns, implants and partial dentures and can be very complex to manage. However in her 9 years working in aged care settings, she clearly sees a lack of oral health care training.
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Values in Workplace Culture
Professor Sabe Sabesan, is the Clinical Dean of the Townsville Regional Medical Training network incorporating the Townsville Hospital and Health Services and the Townsville Clinical School of the James Cook University and the director of the department of Medical oncology at the Townsville Cancer Centre, Townsville Hospital.
The Professor recently wrote, “Workforce wellness and engagement have become buzzwords in healthcare settings since there is an intimate relationship between staff wellbeing and performance of the healthcare system. Wellness initiatives such as wellness champions and wellness committees have been set up in response to emerging workforce mental health issues. These are largely reactive rather than being proactive in addressing or preventing the root cause of mental health issues.”
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Improving access to osteopathic services and integrated care models
The Chief Executive Officer of Osteopathy Australia, Antony Nicholas spoke with Australian Health Journal about:
– Involvement in the Strengthening Medicare Task Force
– The unique skills osteopaths have that can address the chronic disease burden
– Current workforce issues around osteopaths and if enough are coming through via student placements
– How uploading data to My Health Record by osteopaths could assist team-based care of patients
– How the value of osteopaths in Residential Aged Care Facilities (RACFs) could be better understood and better access for residents
– The recommendations around aged care access to allied health services, including osteopathy
– The recommendations around consumer access to osteopaths and GP referrals
– Other osteopathy recommendations in the upcoming Federal BudgetIn the lead up to the Australian Federal Budget in May 2023, Australian Health Journal reached out to peak health industry bodies to hear about their priorities, either noted in pre-budget submissions lodged with Federal Government in January 2023 or in recent forums such as the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce.
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Diary of a Paramedic in a primary health care clinic
Alecka Miles is a lecturer at Edith Cowan University and works as a paramedic in a multidisciplinary team at Dianella Family Medical Centre in Metropolitan Perth, Western Australia.
Community paramedic roles have a history in Australia, dating back to 2007 in New South Wales and followed by similar initiatives in South Australia and New Zealand. Alecka’s position emerged after she sought to evaluate how paramedics could integrate into general practice, ultimately leading to a job offer post-COVID lockdown in 2020. Her skills, particularly in cannulation, proved valuable as healthcare shifted towards primary care.
